2023-06-02 19:07:04
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — A former Missouri State University history professor accused of stabbing a colleague was found not guilty Friday by reason of insanity.
Greene County Judge David Jones handed down his ruling in the case of Edward Gutting, who was charged with first-degree murder in the 2016 death of Marc Cooper inside Cooper’s Springfield home. Cooper’s wife, Nancy, was injured but survived, the Springfield News-Leader reported.
The trial was delayed for several years in part by a series of mental evaluations. The judge issued his ruling after a six-day trial.
Marc Cooper, 66, who had retired, sustained more than 40 stab wounds. Gutting’s lawyers said the attack was the result of a schizophrenic hallucination. Several doctors diagnosed Gutting as mentally ill after his arrest.
But prosecutors said Gutting killed Cooper in a rage fueled by alcohol and stress that stemmed from a series of work-related slights and insults. The tipping point, they said, was Gutting’s belief that Cooper intervened when Gutting was seeking a permanent teaching position.
No sentencing date was set, but Jones said Gutting could be sent to a state mental health facility “for the rest of his life.”
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